Let the Puppet Go
Following the murder of three agents, U.S. agent Paul Sherman (Sven-Bertil Taube) is sent to Amsterdam with a mission to crack a drug smuggling ring. On arrival he soon finds himself being tailed but also a city with a major drug problem which the police ignore as they can't even start to combat it. With the aid of a female secret agent, Sherman is soon ruffling feathers and stepping on people's toes as he tries to get to the root of the problem.
In most walks of life you will have people who like one thing whilst others like something else. So when it comes to "Puppet on a Chain", the 1971 adaptation of an Alistair MacLean story, there are those who love it whilst there are others who find it tedious and I am in the latter group as I find this relentlessly dull, lacking the cast to bring the characters to life. As such whilst I am sure in the right role Sven-Bertil Taube delivers an engaging performance his emotionless performance here makes Paul Sherman come across more like a dull accountant than an agent who faces danger in the line of duty.
That is in many ways the issue with "Puppet on a Chain", it lacks the characters to make it engaging but it also lacks the atmosphere with director Geoffrey Reeve failing to bring the danger of the story to life. Yet there are those who seem to enjoy this and I have a feeling they are probably the ones who have read the story and can fill in the various gaps which leaves others wondering what is what. I also suspect that those who saw this back in 1971 when it was released probably have fond memories of it yet for those who watch it now will find its lack of atmosphere off putting.
What this all boils down to is that "Puppet on a Chain" really didn't do it for me and for a movie which features an agent and a drugs ring it is one of the least exciting movies I have come across and incredibly slow going.
